The blood and flames of the Bone Eater Gorge drifted with the sea breeze, but the aftermath of the victory still stirred in the Stone Steps Islands.
After completely eliminating the remnants of resistance in the gorge, Liu Qian's fleet swept through Salado Thorn's lair, Bloodstone Island, and the adjacent Grey Gallows Island.
The defenders of the island resisted symbolically and surrendered.
At the highest point of Bloodstone Island, there stands the fortress that Salado is proud of.
At this moment, on the flagpole at the top of the fortress tower, Salado's simple embalmed head was swaying gently with the sea breeze, and his empty eye sockets were blankly "looking down" at the island he had ruled.
The head that once stared at the narrow sea has now become the most direct declaration of the new order.
Belonging to the era of the "Prince of the Narrow Sea", together with his huge fleet, he sank into the abyss of the Bone Eating Gorge.
In the tower hall, light shines through narrow arrow holes, casting mottled light and shadow on the ground.
The air is filled with the smell of sea and dust.
Liu Qian sat on a high-back chair covered with rough bearskin, and Rollo and Hal stood on his left and right sides, their eyes scanning the hall sharply.
In the center of the hall, there were two men with complex expressions and slightly embarrassed clothes.
Collien Sasman and Mezzo Maher.
When Liu Qian's fleet sailed out of the Bone Eating Gorge and collided head-on with the hesitant battleship, Corian did not hesitate at all, lowered Salado's flag cleanly, and chose to surrender.
At this moment, they stand in front of the victors, waiting for the verdict of fate.
"Captain Corrion, Mr. Mezzo,"
Liu Qian's voice was not high, but it echoed clearly in the empty stone hall: "As far as I know, you are Sarado's trusted confidant, so why didn't your 'Shayara's Dance' follow your master at the moment when the fate was decided in the Bone Eating Gorge?" "
Colin raised his head, glanced at Mezzo who was pale beside him, took a deep breath, and his voice was hoarse with a hint of bitterness: "My lord, it's not that we are greedy for life and afraid of death, but Salado can't listen to any dissuasion." "
He paused: "The waterway of the Bone Eating Gorge is narrow, the reefs are dense, and the water is fast, Mezzo and I have tried our best to advise and point out the risk of rushing in, and we reminded him that it may be a trap set by you... However... Salado was carried away, he thought that your forces were weak and that you had no courage to set up an ambush in the gorge, and that our advice had become a cowardly noise in his ears, so he thought that we had shaken the morale of the army, reprimanded Mezzo and me, and sent them to the mouth of the gorge to 'be on guard'. "
Liu Qian listened quietly.
He didn't expect Salado to be so arrogant and stubborn.
Through the mouths of these two surrendered generals, Liu Qian understood why this ambush was so easy to succeed.
A commander who turned a deaf ear to the desperate dissuasion of the core generals, his defeat was doomed the moment he stepped into the Bone Eating Gorge.
This is not a simple tactical mistake, but a fatal flaw rooted deep in the character.
"The era of Salado is over."
Liu Qian's eyes swept over Colian and Mezzo, and finally landed on the shadow of the head swaying in the wind outside the tower window, in a flat tone.
"You two, as his core subordinates, should have been imprisoned in the dungeon according to common sense, waiting for the final judgment."
As soon as these words came out, the air in the hall seemed to freeze instantly.
Corrien's back straightened subconsciously, and fine beads of sweat oozed from the corners of Mezzo's forehead.
Trial? In this outlawful land, the trial of the loser often means gallows or feeding sharks.
However, Liu Qian changed his mind: "But you chose to surrender unconditionally, avoiding unnecessary bloodshed, and more importantly, at the mouth of the Bone Eating Gorge, you did not block my 'merchant ship' from entering, this move, not only without fault, but with merit, are you willing to do things under my command?" "
Corian and Mezzo's hearts jumped and they quickly looked at each other.
They let those fireships go, believing that one ship alone could not stop them.
But deep down, there is no trace of resentment towards Salado's stubbornness.
However, Liu Qian's characterization at this moment pushed them into an extremely delicate position, directly breaking the "criticality" of their behavior.
It was the fireships that were released that became the fuse that ignited Sarado's fleet and triggered a chain collapse.
This is equivalent to nailing them to the label of "betrayal" the old master, and at the same time, packaging this "betrayal" as "credit" to the new master.
This is simply an invisible shackle.
Once they accept this statement, it will be extremely difficult for them to stay out of the situation or even go elsewhere.
The Shijie Islands and even the entire Narrow Sea will regard them as Liu Qian's "meritorious ministers", and any other force that accepts them will risk angering the new overlord.
Collienne's mind was electric, and he instantly understood the trick.
The complex expression on his face eventually turned into a relieved calm, even with a hint of relief.
He knelt on one knee, his voice loud and clear: "My lord, Salado is stubborn and self-willed, cronyism, and has long been unpopular, I, Corian Susman, am willing to swear allegiance to you, and take the helm for you until death." "
Under Sarado, he has been ostracized because of his upright personality and dislike flattery, and he has only the best sailing skills, but he can only barely keep his position as captain.
Watching those flattering and mediocre people rise step by step by step, the dissatisfaction in his heart has long accumulated.
Liu Qian's strength and sense of order made him see some new possibilities.
"My lord, Mezzo Maher is also willing to serve you..."
When Corian simply expressed his allegiance, Mezzo also seemed to have made up his mind and no longer hesitated, expressing his allegiance.
For them, the Shijie Islands were the only place where they could stay, and now the entire sea area was ruled by the Orientals in front of them, what could they do if they didn't submit?
Liu Qian nodded slightly, and there were not many mood swings on his face: "Very good, remember your oath today, go down, you are temporarily incorporated under Luo Luo, and he will arrange your ships and manpower." "
The two were pardoned, and after saluting respectfully, they exited the hall at Rollo's signal.
The heavy stone door slowly closed, isolating the light and sound from the outside world, leaving only Liu Qian, Luo Luo, Hal, and several dragon spirit guards standing in the shadows like sculptures in the hall.
The oppressive atmosphere dissipated with the departure of outsiders.
Luo Luo's face immediately bloomed with an undisguised red light of excitement, and he took a step forward, his voice trembling slightly because of excitement: "My lord, this battle of the Bone Eating Gorge is an unprecedented victory, inside and outside the Bone Eating Gorge, plus the surrendered troops of Bloodstone Island and Gray Gallows Island, the total number of prisoners is as high as 5,500 people."
Although most of Salado's fleet was burned or crashed and sunk, we salvaged seventy-five warships of all sizes that could still be repaired.
What's more, in the cellar of Salado's fortress, we found his 'treasure house', which roughly estimated that it contained golden dragons, silver deer, various gold and silver vessels and gems, equivalent to at least 400,000 gold dragons. "
400,000 golden dragons.
This is undoubtedly an astonishing amount of money, and Liu Qian's eyes also flashed a trace of satisfaction.
The windfall came at the right time.
At this time, Jelena, who had just finished reorganizing the army, came in from outside.
"How are the prisoners disposed of?"
Liu Qian asked, his eyes on Jelena, who had just walked into the hall.
Jerena's voice was cold and capable: "My lord, according to your instructions, all 5,500 prisoners have been disbanded from their original establishment, and all the officers appointed by Salado, regardless of size, have been replaced, and the soldiers have been completely mixed according to the island of origin and the original faction, and supplemented into our original ranks." "
She paused and added, "There was a little commotion in the process, but I was suppressed by the dragon spirit guards, killed a few thorns, and now they are all honest." "
Liu Qian nodded.
Dispersing, mixing, installing their own people, and killing chickens and monkeys are the most effective means to digest and absorb the huge surrendering army and prevent it from backlash.
"Very good, Rollo, those captured warships should be sent to the dock immediately for repair, and those that are seriously damaged, dismantle and replenish other ships, and be sure to restore them to usable condition as soon as possible."
"Yes, my lord." Rollo immediately responded.
Although most of the seventy-five ships were injured, after repair, they would greatly enhance Liu Qian's maritime power.
Jelena then reported the details of the reorganization: "At present, the division of troops is as follows, under my command, there are 2,000 pirate soldiers, 3,000 new reorganized soldiers, a total of 5,000 people, and 400 dragon spirit guards."
Under Luo Luo's command, there were 1,000 pirate soldiers, and 1,000 new reorganized surrendered soldiers, for a total of 2,000 people.
Under Hal's command, there were originally 500 people, but 1,000 new reorganized surrendered soldiers, for a total of 1,500 people.
Under Chai Yi's command, 500 new reorganized surrendered soldiers were added, and they were assigned to his original 500 dragon spirit guards. "
She glanced at Liu Qian: "In addition, the Torture Abyss is guarded by Janice and has three hundred dragon spirit guards and five hundred pirate soldiers." Janice has handed over the command of the other three hundred dragon spirit guards to you as your personal guards, so it is calculated that my lord, the total strength of your command has exceeded 10,000, including 1,500 dragon spirit guards and more than 9,500 pirate soldiers. "
When this number was reported, even Hal, who had always been calm, couldn't help but gasp.
An army of ten thousand.
This is definitely an unprecedented scale in the history of the chaotic Shijie Islands.
Although the discipline and combat effectiveness of these pirate soldiers are far from comparable to those of the well-trained and well-equipped regular armies of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, their huge numbers themselves are a powerful deterrent, especially in the Narrow Sea, a battlefield dominated by pirate plunder.
Rollo couldn't hold back the excitement and ambition in his heart, he took a step forward, his voice slightly high-pitched due to excitement: "My lord, now that the Stone Steps Islands are under control, the battle of the Bone Eating Gorge, the entire army of Salado is wiped out, and there is no second person in this sea area who can compete with you." "
His eyes flashed with enthusiasm, "You should wear the crown and become the true 'King of the Narrow Sea and the Stone Steps', which is the glory you deserve." "
"King?" Liu Qian repeated these two words in a low voice, his gaze became deep and distant, as if he had penetrated the rough stone wall and saw the long history of this archipelago.